Politeness in All Things
by dragonofeternal
Summary: The day he decided to summon a demon, Hakuryuu took a nice hot shower and cleaned his entire house.
The day he decided to summon a demon, Hakuryuu took a nice hot shower and cleaned his entire house. It's polite, you see, to look your best and have your home looking its best whenever you have a guest over. Just because said guest is an infernal abomination from beyond the range of mortal imagining doesn't mean you can be impolite.

And Hakuryuu was polite, above almost all else. He tipped reasonably, he held doors open for women, and he worked hard. For politeness, you see, gives a certain invisibility. People remember the vagaries of it- they remember the fuzzy feeling that someone held a door open or said thank you- but they don't give it the aggressive, hateful remembrance reserved for assholes. That isn't to say that Hakuryuu was a wicked man or a spiteful person, just that he was polite for mostly selfish reasons.

It was for those very same selfish reasons that Hakuryuu decided to tidy up his house and summon a demon from the depths of hell.

He assembled the components in the kitchen, dragging the table half into the hall so there would be room to draw the circle and mark his own defensive space. He mixed ash and spring water to make his circle paint and meticulously laid down his wards. Incense and candles were lit, and Hakuryuu closed the curtains over his sink, casting the room in a dreamlike flicker. Finally, he stepped into his circle and calmly recited the words to call up his guest. The magic scorched his mouth, and the lights in other parts of the house flickered until finally the bulbs in the kitchen burst, showering the circle in glass.

The demon regarded the shards of glass with mild interest before flicking his eyes up to consider Hakuryuu. "Well, well, well…" he purred, kicking up into the air to hover a few inches above the floor and bringing one clawed, blackened hand up to cradle his face. "It's been quite a while since I was out. People are dressing completely differently now."

Hakuryuu sucked in a breath. He had been prepared to deal with a fetching guest; he'd read that demons often appeared in fetching guises, like beautiful women or handsome men, but he hadn't been quite prepared to be so taken by something less human seeming. Yet from the tip of his sweeping horns to the curl of his bestial feet, the demon was undeniably handsome. "I'm not surprised," Hakuryuu said, trying not to be too distracted by the demon's piercing red eyes. "Most people don't believe in this sort of thing nowadays." He coughed and shut his book as a way of passing an awkward silence without too much notice. "I've summoned you to ask you for your help."

"Well, you made a good choice," the demon said, examining the claws on his other hand. They blended seamlessly into the flesh, and their ichor black extended past his hands, going halfway up his forearms. "Since you were able to summon me, doubtless you know of my achievements."

"Not really," Hakuryuu said, a bit too bluntly.

The demon staggered in the air, his jaw dropping. "What?!" He threw his feet back to the floor and stomped to the edge of his circle. "What do you mean, not really? You know the name of the Great Demon Judal, Mage of the Blackest Pits, Scourge of the Luck Bringer, the absolute, fabulous me, and you don't even know of a single one of my achievements!?"

"Um. Yes." Hakuryuu bit his lip and shrugged sheepishly. "The text I found it in, it really only had your name scribbled in the margins. It said you were someone to be avoided, so I figured that meant you'd be useful."

Judal considered this and seemed to find it a satisfactory answer. "Well, you weren't wrong." Hakuryuu stood awkwardly and watched Judal stomp around his summoning circle, grumbling like a petulant child. He looked a lot less intimidating that way. "Well?" he finally snapped, loud enough to be understood again. "What is it you want?"

"Oh, right." Hakuryuu swallowed. "Judal, as your summoner, I command you to tutor me in the arts of magic." That brought a manic grin to Judal's face. "I want to become strong enough that no man or woman could stand against me." He could feel the magic in his words as he spoke, bold and full, echoing off the walls of the room and making them feel like papery imitations of reality in comparison.

Judal's grin grew wider and wider with every word, revealing every one of his sharp teeth. "And you'd give your soul for that?"

"Without a second thought," Hakuryuu replied. "It means nothing compared to what I could achieve with power like that."

"That's the sort of thing I like to hear." Judal extended a hand. "I accept your terms, conjurer. Now all that's left is to seal the contract. I'm rather fond of sealing such a thing with a kiss."

Hakuryuu nodded, swallowing thickly as he stepped from his circle to Judal's. Judal wrapped an arm around him, pulling him close. Hakuryuu, not wanting to seem a weak and wilting flower, put his hand behind Judal's head, pulling him down and into the kiss.

The demon tasted like peaches and power, and Hakuryuu hoped he'd have a chance to taste it again.


End file.
